Applications for the 2012 program will open up on March 12, 2012 at the Toyota Facebook page. The application process will be open for two weeks or until 5,000 applications have been received. At that point an independent panel of judges will select 500 finalists and each finalist will submit a video detailing how a new Toyota vehicle will help support the nonprofit’s mission.

In May 2012, the public voting will begin. Every day, for 100 consecutive days, five nonprofit organizations will be featured on the Toyota Facebook page and members of the public will be able to vote for their favorite charity. The winner will receive a new Toyota vehicle and each of the four runners up will receive a $1,000 grant.

Winning nonprofits will be able to choose one of the following six Toyota models, Camry Hybrid, Highlander, Prius v, Sienna, Sienna Mobility or the Tundra full-sized pickup. Each vehicle comes with a six-year, 100-mile powertrain warranty.

Stuart Strahl, Ph.D., the president and CEO of the Chicago Zoological Society, was on hand at the Chicago Auto Show when Toyota made the 2012 Cars for Good announcement. The Chicago Zoological Society was one of the 100 winning organizations in the program’s inaugural year and Strahl explained how his organization has benefited from the new vehicle.

“We are very appreciative of this tremendous donation from Toyota. The new van has been invaluable in our efforts to bring our conservation and informal science education programs to under-resourced communities throughout Chicago and the suburbs. Our dedicated staff travels year round to these communities, inspiring families to gain an appreciation of nature and wildlife, not only globally, but also in their own backyards. We have also used the minivan to transport young students to the zoo and field locations as part of the Society’s award-winning Youth Volunteer Corps.” Source: Toyota